So the last weekend saw us complete our 2015 season with a tour in Wales

I admit to watching the weather forecast anxiously for our final weekend tour in Wales. After all it is the home of Rugby, singing and rain! The BBC assured me that it would be dry if a little dull – so after the summer we have had in the UK I reckoned that was as good as it was going to get.

I met up with the group at our hotel in Wales; it was like a who’s who of everyone that has toured with us over the years and was good to see so many familiar faces, especially Phil who was one of our very first customers some 20 years ago and it starting to look younger. I must find out where he gets his Peter Pan juice.

The Triumph XRX enjoyed its first outing in anger and proved to being more than up to the job. I am still blown away by the engine and gearbox but not so much with the suspension, especially at the front end which I find too hard. However, after talking with various people,  I believe I am comparing it too much with the Pan European, which at 300 kilo tends to absorb the bumps whereas  the lighter Triumph tends to feel them all. Also after doing over 200,000 miles on Pans it is a little unfair to make a comparison.

With no advantage weather wise as to our direction, Saturday saw us head to the Elan Valley. Our journey south was plagued with the early morning mist that had been around all week, with little sight of the sun to burn it off, however, a weak yellow globe eventually appeared through the clouds, and we emerged into sunshine just in time for coffee.

We had a good run through the valleys and past the reservoirs slowly working our way back towards Snowdonia. I am always amazed by the roads in Wales; I thought all roads came with the compulsory trench down one side…. A very together group this, giving Graham Lagden who had volunteered to be ‘tail end Charlie’ an easy time and we all arrived back at the hotel having had a really good ride. We also had a good night in the bar with the exception of watching England go out of the Rugby World cup.

Repeat performance for Sunday, however this time we stayed to the north, first tangling with a cycle race up the Horseshoe before finding some scenic back roads around Lake Vyrnwy. Well I thought they were scenic – just how do they get the grass to grow down the middle?

We had lunch at the ever popular Betwys-y-Coed where we met up with no less than 4 of our regular customers, before returning to more of the great roads Wales has to offer.

Once again the weather played no small part in making this a really enjoyable tour and a fitting end to our tour season.